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Erika Edwards
Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University
Curator of Botany at the Peabody Museum of Natural History
Director of Marsh Botanical Gardens
"Consilience, Model Lineages, and A Truly Integrative Phylogenetic Biology"
Abstract: The Edward’s lab’s research is centered on the concept of developing “model lineages” for macroevolution. Just as many hard problems in genetics and development could only be addressed by developing model systems such as Drosophila and Arabidopsis, problems in macroevolution are no less complicated, and require a similarly rich context in which to work and interpret findings. The development of model lineages requires a wide variety of biological sub-disciplines, including phylogenetics, physiology, anatomy, genomics, and field ecology, and the lab integrates these data types to produce a more complete picture of whole organism evolution. Prof. Edwards will share some recent insights from her lab’s work with two of their favorite model lineages: Viburnum and the evolution of leaf form; and the Portulacineae and the evolution of C4 and CAM photosynthesis.
Host: OEB Graduate Students